Tottenham to confirm Micky van de Ven and Alejo Veliz as Tanguy Ndombele and Djed Spence put on transfer list
Alejo Veliz and Micky van de Ven, two further summer additions for Tottenham, are also scheduled for medicals today.
Dutch Under-21 center-half Van de Ven was present yesterday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to see his new team defeat Shakhtar Donetsk 5-1 in a friendly match for Ukrainians. He is ready to complete a £43 million transfer from Wolfsburg, and head coach Ange Postecoglou is hopeful the 22-year-old will be the first of two new centre-back arrivals.
“There’s no doubt we need some bolstering in that area,” Postecoglou said yesterday. “We’re looking for players that can play the kind of football we want. Hopefully, we’ll get one or two done in the next couple of days to bolster us in that area.”
Highly-rated forward Veliz is also due to sign a long-term contract, after Spurs agreed a fee of about £13m with Rosario Central. The 19-year-old Argentina youth international is considered one for the future but will remain at Spurs this season, despite the Argentine club requesting his return on loan.
Postecoglou will have a roster of more than 35 senior players after their additions, although Spurs anticipate accelerating departures this week. Hugo Lloris, Tanguy Ndombele, Joe Rodon, and Djed Spence—all of whom were omitted from the team to play Shakhtar—are on the transfer list, while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Davinson Sanchez are among others who might depart for the right price.
“I don’t have a fixed number [of players] in my head, but it’s fair to say our squad is too big at the moment,” Postecoglou said. There are men who will undoubtedly look for employment elsewhere.
“It is not something I am involved in. I will deal with what’s in front of me and I think we’ll see some movement out over the next few weeks. We’ve obviously got a bit of time before the end of the transfer window.”
Harry Kane scored four goals yesterday but his future remains uncertain, with Bayern Munich still confident of landing the England captain and waiting for Spurs to respond to their latest bid.
Postecoglou afterwards aimed a dig at Bayern’s very public pursuit of Kane, saying: “Right now, he is a contracted player of our club. I wouldn’t talk about contracted players at other clubs, but I’m not at Bayern, so they can go the way they want.”
